Office of Greenways & Trails Summer Connections Newsletter

Florida Department of Environmental Protection sent this bulletin at 06/29/2016 04:48 PM EDT

New Road Trips Developed

The Office of Greenways and Trails (OGT) has recently completed several new online itineraries
or “road trips” for Sunshine State residents and visitors. Each road trip
focuses on outdoor recreation, history and culture within a 15-mile radius of a
chosen site. Each site is generally a small town, rural county or a state park
that offers overnight accommoda-tions. The goal is to promote extended
stays in by featuring multiple trail opportunities and
points-of-interest. Locations range from Topsail Hill Preserve State Park in the
Panhandle to White Springs in North-Central Florida to Lake Kissimmee State
Park near Lake Wales.

“We’re doing our part to promote sustainable tourism and to
spread visitation throughout the state,” said OGT Bureau Chief Samantha Browne.
Florida was a destination for 105 million tourists in 2015. By 2020, an
estimated 125 million visitors are expected.

Each road trip contains helpful maps and photos that can be found on the OGT
website. When the overall project is complete, different themes
that focus on Florida state parks will be explored. Seven road trips
have already been completed for the “Wish You Were Here” project, one that features
state parks that were once classic Old Florida attractions, such as Weeki
Wachee Springs and Silver Springs.

American Trails Seeking 2019 Symposium Host

American
Trails is seeking a host for its 2019 International Trails Symposium. The
symposium is held every two years. The 2015 Symposium held in Portland, OR
hosted more than 600 attendees, held numerous workshops and brought together
planners from all over the world. The 2017 Symposium will be held May 7-10
in Dayton, OH.

To obtain a host bid packet for the 2019 Symposium, contact Candace
Mitchell at candace@americantrails.org. The deadline for bid
proposals is Sept. 15, 2016.

Plan and Priority Map Updates to Begin

The Florida
Greenways and Trails System (FGTS) is made up of existing, planned and conceptual trails and ecological greenways that form a connected, integrated
statewide network. This green infrastructure plan ties together local trails to
make regional and statewide connections, and links parks, preserves and other
natural areas into greenways, forming a network to benefit the state’s natural
and human environment. The plan uses locally adopted plans and community, agency
and non-profit group recommendations to find where funds should be focused to improve the overall system. Trails that
are part of the system include paved and unpaved hiking, biking, equestrian and
shared-use paths, along with water trails.

This year, OGT staff will
begin the process of updating its five-year
plan
and priority
trails map, both of which further the vision of establishing and
expanding the FGTS. The map and plan update will begin with internal workshops
and meetings with key partners, followed by an online and in-person public
input campaign in 2017. The final draft of the 2018-2022 Plan and Priority
Trails Map will be presented to the Florida Greenways and Trails Council for
adoption at the end of 2017. Stay tuned for more information and a
solicitation for input in the coming months and year.

The priority trails map is
increasingly important to statewide planning efforts, taking on special
significance this past year when the Florida Department of Transportation’s Shared-Use Non-motorized (SUN) Trail Program used
paved, shared-use trails on the map to create the SUN
Trail Network. As the priority trails map is updated at the
end of 2017, this information will be transmitted to partners including FDOT to
update the SUN Trail Network and direct resources toward closing gaps in the
system. The updated FGTS 2018-2022 map and plan is expected to serve as the
baseline for future recommendations on funding by the Florida Greenways and
Trails Council.

Summer 2016

Bartram Trail - a New National Recreation Trail

Whitney Sanford at Rocky Point along the Bartram Trail.

One June 4, National Trails Days, the
Bartram Trail in Putnam County was one of six local and state trails to receive the National Recreation Trails designation by the federal government. A $15,000
Florida Humanities grant helped to develop the trail and OGT's Paddling Coordinator, Liz Sparks, assisted trail organizers with the application process.

“By designating these new national trails, we recognize the efforts of
local communities to provide outdoor recreational opportunities that can be
enjoyed by everyone,” said Interior Secretary Sally Jewell. “Our world-class network of national trails provides easily
accessible places to enjoy exercise and connect with nature in both urban and
rural areas, while also boosting tourism and supporting economic opportunities
in local communities across the country.”

The Bartram Trail in Putnam County was inspired by the
writings of John Bartram and his son, William, naturalists and authors who
explored the region in the 1700s. Many of the 30-plus sites that the two wrote about
in Putnam County can now be visited by either land or water along the trail
system.

“The natural resources here
are fantastic and this will be a great way of exposing those resources to the
whole country,” said Sam Carr, one of the trail organizers. “The designation
will be a huge benefit to Putnam County as far as ecotourism goes. All of this work has really come to
fruition.”

To celebrate the designation, a “Bartram Frolic” will be held Sept. 4-5 at
the St. Johns River Center in Palatka. Festivities will include paddling trips,
boat rides, music, a regatta and food the Bartrams described in
their writings. The frolic commemorates the party William Bartram once
celebrated with Native Americans at the site of present-day Palatka.

Florida Coast-to-Coast Trail Updates

The success of
regional trails throughout the country can be accredited to building a brand
with marketing, signs and promotions. This is apparent on trails such as the
East Coast Greenway and Great Allegheny Passage Trail. This need now extends to
the Florida Coast-to-Coast Trail (C2C), the cross Florida 250-mile trail
that is being built from St. Petersburg along the Gulf Coast to the Atlantic Ocean
near Titusville.

As a result of a new planning study coordinated by several
regional planning councils, the C2C Trail Leadership Team recommended
the adoption of several types of signs and logos that can be used for wayfinding
and branding trails at their June 3 meeting in Clermont. The research
team also recommended removing “Connector” from the name, coining the new name
for the trail as the Florida Coast-to-Coast Trail, which identifies
the connection between Florida’s two coastlines and addresses the
trail’s non-auto focus.

The leadership team will now work
with municipalities and counties to put in place wayfinding, monument and other
signs. The new C2C logo could be placed on existing trail signs or
retrofitted to the C2C style. Trail segments will be constructed and opened relatively
quickly as a newly dedicated source of funding was recently established, and
each gap closed represents growth in the statewide system. Signs will be installed where feasible to assist in wayfinding.

Lake Jackson Named Florida's Newest Designated Paddling Trail

Located just north of Tallahassee, Lake Jackson is
Florida’s newest designated paddling trail. More than 4,000 acres in size, the
expansive lake provides a tranquil oasis within a bustling urban area and is an
enticing destination for viewing sunsets, paddling, boating, fishing and
birding. With wide open vistas and a variety of rich wetland habitats, Lake
Jackson offers excellent birding opportunities as several small parks
surrounding the lake are sites featured on the Great Florida
Birding and Wildlife Trail. Lake Jackson has historically been a prime destination for bass
fishing and other freshwater fish, while hunters are drawn here during the short
winter waterfowl
hunting season.

Paddling on Lake Jackson is relatively easy given its
openness, lack of current and few powerboats. Access to the lake is convenient with multiple
county boat landings, which allow visitors to create a trip of any length.

Lake Jackson is considered to be a “prairie
lake” because it occasionally drains due to several sinkholes located in the
lake bed. The lake’s most recent dry event occurred in 2007, but water levels
have since risen to make for ideal paddling.